Sealed electrical switches are principally used outdoors or in industry, where they must be shielded from environmental elements, such as water, whether it be spray or pressurized water, chemicals or dust. These elements create high demands on the sealing in the switching region. The fields of use for switches of this type are very diverse and range for example from use in shipbuilding, in craft and gardening devices through to use in construction machines.
Switches of the type mentioned above are known inter alia from EP1581959B1. Here, a toggle switch is described, which has a seal, which is arranged around a bushing. The switch upper part has a spacer with projections, in order to prevent too strong a compression of the seal. The switch is suitable to be mounted into an opening located in a plate. The switch is fastened by means of a screw connection.
Defective mounting of sealed switches often leads to a loss of function of the seal. Thus, for example, the seal can be compressed too strongly or too weakly, which can lead to damage of the seal or to a reduction of the sealing function. In addition, it may occur in the case of incorrect mounting, that the switch is not permanently fastened on the installation region, as fastening elements are not completely locked for example. This is problematic to a certain extent in the case of the mounting of switches in openings of components, as the latching region is not visible and thus it is not possible to investigate correct mounting by visual inspection.